Oblivious
by El loopy
Summary: Hunny and Mori had mentioned that two of the Host Club members were completely oblivious to their feelings. They were wrong. Oneshot. One-sided Kyoya x Haruhi and Karou x Haruhi.


Oblivious

Hunny was wrong. Neither Karou or Kyoya were oblivious. Certainly not more so than Tamaki – was that even possible? The fact of the matter was that they both had someone they cared about more than themselves, not that one of them would ever admit it.

Karou was observant, and he was thoughtful. It hadn't taken him very long to recognise the signs in the Boss. From day one Tamaki doted on Haruhi, and right behind him were the twins; making fun of him, winding him up...the stuff they did best. It wasn't until Hikaru started acting odd though that Karou really started to pay attention.

They were individuals and yet one unit. They were different and yet the same. As he watched Hikaru he realised that his brother was in fact in love with Haruhi...and as an extension of his brother he knew that he was as well. The thought had come on gently, brushing his mind with a light touch as he watched Haruhi and Hikaru talking about something mundane one morning in class. He had caught hold of the thought in cupped hands as gently as though it were a small bird, and examined it carefully through interlocked fingers. A sigh escaped as he recognised it for what it was and tucked it in his pocket for later.

It was a shame, he acknowledged the loss pragmatically, but Hikaru needed her more and his twin would always come first. He watched as she drew his brother out, made him more sociable, thoughtful, caring...in short knocked off the rough edges that needed to be worn. So he pushed them together with an ache in his heart, locking the thought that he had captured in a cage in the darkness, and slowly feeling the invisible rope that connected him to Hikaru fray. Each snapping thread painful. He almost found it odd that Hikaru hadn't noticed yet, but then he was a bit of a dummy.

Kyoya felt much the same about Tamaki. The guy was a bit of a dummy. He could still remember, with equal parts amusement and frustration, dancing attendance on him when he was new to the school. Tamaki was the only one who had ever succeeded in drawing out the real Kyoya. Kyoya had not really had 'friends' before, not in the genuine sense, and yet once Tamaki had entered his life he found friendship came naturally. The right thing to say and the right thing to do were always only a breath away, and it sometimes took all his powers of resistance to not dive in head first, following his infectious leader. Kyoya did the right thing his way, coolly and calmly and more often than not found that it worked out much better than Tamaki's hot-headed charge. Nevertheless though, without the blonde he would never have known that he had the capacity for this thing called 'friendship'.

Kyoya knew Tamaki. He knew why the Host Club Prince acted the way he did; the love, the loss, the hope, the longing. From day one he saw the effect Haruhi had on him. The utter and complete hold she took without Tamaki realising or understanding. Kyoya understood. He understood when he felt the Natural's spell begin to weave around his own heart. He resisted at first until he thought about it pragmatically. This was a force not unlike Tamaki. It would not be bought, reasoned with, or persuaded by logic and resisting it would only make it rebound stronger. So he did what he did best; he took it and made it part of him, calmly and coolly, so that it would not alter his judgement (except when he realised that he was threatening someone with his family's entire private police force just so the Club wouldn't lose her). Ultimately though, none of it meant anything, because there was someone who needed her more. Though Kyoya would never admit it out loud he thought his friend deserved some happiness, and he had that with Haruhi. She grounded him, made him think through his actions. She was genuine, unlike the girls at the club, and saw past his mere beauty, so when she gave him a compliment it meant more. She could give Tamaki what he needed and wanted most, and Kyoya would not stand in the way of that.

So Hunny was wrong; neither Karou or Kyoya were oblivious. They were merely each watching the scene unfold, rooting for another because, ultimately, they both had someone they cared about more.


End file.
